I was almost impeached
I was almost impeached for getting cars off sidewalks which car owning upper classes had illegally appropriated for parking. Enrique Penalosa
Enrique Penalosa
A premise of the
A premise of the new city is that we want a society to be as egalitarian as possible. For this purpose, quality-of-life distribution is more important than income distribution. [And quality of life includes] a living environment as free of motor vehicles as possible. Enrique Penalosa
God made us walking
God made us walking animals – pedestrians. As a fish needs to swim, a bird to fly, a deer to run, we need to walk, not in order to survive, but to be happy. Enrique Penalosa
We had to build
We had to build a city not for businesses or automobiles, but for children and thus for people. Instead of building highways, we restricted car use. We invested in high-quality sidewalks, pedestrian streets, parks, bicycle paths, libraries; we got rid of thousands of cluttering commercial signs and planted trees. All our everyday efforts have one … Read more
Urban transport is a
Urban transport is a political and not a technical issue. The technical aspects are very simple. The difficult decisions relate to who is going to benefit from the models adopted. Enrique Penalosa
One symbol of lack
One symbol of lack of democracy is to have cars parked on the sidewalk. Enrique Penalosa
We need to walk,
We need to walk, just as birds need to fly. We need to be around other people. We need beauty. We need contact with nature. And most of all, we need not to be excluded. We need to feel some sort of equality. Enrique Penalosa
A protected bicycle lane
A protected bicycle lane in the city in a developing country is a powerful symbol, showing that a citizen on the $30 bicycle is as important as one in a $30,000 car Enrique Penalosa
The importance of pedestrian
The importance of pedestrian public spaces cannot be measured, but most other important things in life cannot be measured either: Friendship, beauty, love and loyalty are examples. Parks and other pedestrian places are essential to a city’s happiness. Enrique Penalosa
In every detail a
In every detail a city should reflect that human beings are sacred and that they are equal. Enrique Penalosa